For Caprice Lockett, practice sessions don’t end when she walks off the Ansbach track.
Lockett, the 2013 Stars and Stripes girls track Athlete of the Year, records her training workouts and watches them afterward, looking for tiny flaws and inconsistencies in her technique. When she finds them, she adjusts at the next day’s practice, and watches that video to ensure they’ve been fully corrected.
“Everything she does is repetition after repetition after repetition,” Ansbach coach Michael Jimerson said. “She’s kind of a loner out there a little bit, she kind of blocks everyone out.”
Ironically, that single-minded focus led not just to individual gold for Lockett but great team success for the Cougars at the recent DODDS-Europe track and field championships.
Lockett won the high jump with a leap of an even 5 feet, and edged a competitive field in the triple jump for her second individual title of the weekend. The efforts helped Ansbach to a Division II team championship.
“Just a remarkable performance,” Jimerson said.
It was the kind of day Lockett, quite literally, will write home about.
After growing up in the small eastern Texas town of Atlanta, Lockett was faced with the huge adjustment to life overseas. She spent last year in Osan, South Korea, before moving on to the Bavarian city of Ansbach.
“I had to get used to it like anyone else,” Lockett said, citing “routine” as her preferred coping mechanism. “Once you get used to it, it’s fine. “
While she has adjusted well and is enjoying the experience, her thoughts turn often to her beloved grandmother, Dorothy Lewis, and the moments she’s unable to directly share with her.
When inspiration to practice or compete proves elusive, that’s where she ultimately finds it.
“I just really wanted to do great for her. Especially being way out here, she can’t watch me,” Lockett said. “I just wanted to take home something she could see.”
As a three-sport star, Lockett will have plenty to share with Lewis from her time in Germany. The senior was a first-team All-Europe selection in volleyball and a standout member of Ansbach’s basketball team; both squads reached the European championship game.
It’s volleyball where Lockett sees her athletic future. Though she’s excelled at a number of sports in her prep career, her athleticism and jumping ability make her a dominant presence at the net. Her time on the track perfectly complements her efforts to land a spot on a collegiate volleyball roster.
“It keeps me in shape, keeps my hops up,” Lockett said.
Jimerson likes her chances for collegiate success.
“She’s very coachable. She listens to feedback,” Jimerson said. “You don’t get that with a lot of athletes who truly excel. Many of them are uncoachable, and she’s not. She’s very humble.”
Yet another thing for Lockett’s grandmother to be proud of.
broome.gregory@stripes.com Twitter: @broomestripes
